Wellington's Pants!
Now that I've gotten your attention (especially those of you for whom "pants" = "underpants" instead of "trousers")-- a funny story about Wellington being unable to read somebody's handwriting, from Futility Closet:
The following story has been told, but I have not met with it in its absolute correctness. The Duke of Wellington received a letter, ( Read more... )
The following story has been told, but I have not met with it in its absolute correctness. The Duke of Wellington received a letter, ( Read more... )
There is, however, a story about the Duke's pants (as in the underwear sense) concerning Gerald Wellesley's (7th Duke of Wellington) devotion to the 'Wellington Legacy'. It was largely due to the 7th Duke's enthusiasm that the Wellesleys came back to live at Stratfield Saye in 1940s after it had been empty for decades, and the restoration of the building began;
"However, the First Duke would have regretted the obsessive idolatry of his memory, even amongst his own family. Gerry's share in this was gently mocked in Lees-Milne's diary. 'He showed me the Great Duke's Garter robes unpacked for the first time since his death and in perfect preservation, even the long brown curl with the wig-maker's name attached to the label. Gerry held up the Great Duke's underpants to the light, looked intently at the fork, and said solemnly, 'I am glad to see no signs of sweat - or anything else,' as though this were the occassion for personal congratulation.'"
- From Wellington: A Journey Through My Family by Jane Wellesley, 2008
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also, it's interesting how Stratfieldsaye became Stratfield Saye.
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